The United States and its allies will not be able to receive Patriot missiles ordered due to the conflict with Iran before the end of 2028. This follows from the published contracts on the Pentagon’s website.
A total of $7.13 billion was allocated for the purchase of additional ammunition under two existing contracts of Lockheed Martin Corporation. Of this amount, $1.93 billion was allocated to the needs of the US army, while the rest of the funds came from foreign countries under the foreign military sales program.
According to the Pentagon’s budget request for fiscal year 2027, the average cost of one PAC-3 MSE unit for the US armed forces is about $4.3 million. Thus, the allocated financing allows for the purchase of more than 1,600 interceptors.
However, the documents indicate that the period from the moment of placing a repeat order to the actual delivery of the PAC-3 MSE is about 30 months. The shells, funded after the outbreak of the conflict with Iran at the end of February 2026, will be delivered to customers no earlier than the end of 2028.
Production restrictions are an additional constraint. Thus, the Lockheed Martin plant in Texas is capable of producing only about 650 units of the PAC-3 MSE per year.
On the same day, Lockheed Martin announced the start of production of cheaper interceptor missiles for Patriot anti-aircraft missile systems, as demand for anti-drone systems is steadily growing. Representatives of the concern also clarified that the first stages of production can start within 36 months.
